Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns a method for recording usage data describing the use of local coils in a magnetic resonance apparatus, as well as a magnetic resonance apparatus that implements such a method.
Description of the Prior Art
Magnetic resonance apparatuses are widely known. They are complex imaging systems, often used for medical purposes. Despite the development effort that has gone into such apparatuses, errors or compromises in the imaging quality can occur. Hence, it is known for protocol files to be created during magnetic resonance measurements (data acquisitions), to help developers to analyze errors, and ideally to suppress them. These protocol files contain, for example, the recording parameters used, in particular the magnetic resonance sequence used, and/or other operating parameters of the magnetic resonance apparatus.
Ever more frequent use is made of local coils in magnetic resonance imaging; in the case of diagnostic measurements such coils are used almost exclusively. These local coils are frequently not permanently connected to the magnetic resonance device, but are retrieved as necessary, placed in the required position and orientation on the patient, and connected by plugs to various slots on the patient bed of the magnetic resonance device. Depending on the local coil configuration that is used, certain modifications of the recording protocols are available or various modifications are executed in the software employed by the magnetic resonance apparatus.
The coil configurations of such local coils are not apparent from the conventional protocol files, and users generally are able to give only insufficient information about the coil configuration. Since problems with the image quality and/or other error states may depend on the local coils used, this makes it much more difficult to search for errors and in some cases even makes finding the error completely impossible. Without information about the coil configuration, it is not possible for all image quality problems to be reliably resolved by users.
At present users have no choice but to manually note the coil configuration and send it to a customer service center. Because of the many details and the frequent lack of time on the part of users, this is frequently not done adequately, making it more difficult to examine errors.
Furthermore, it is not known how users actually use local coils that are sold. This makes it more difficult to plan marketing activities and/or take decisions about the product lifecycle of local coils. Surveying users about coil usage only produces imprecise and inadequate results.